At least 29 kolbars porters, most commonly Kurds, who carry black market goods from Iraq and Turkey into Iran lost their lives in 2023, with 19 being shot to death by Iranian border guards, three dying from falls off mountain sides, two drowning, two dying from frostbite and three from unknown causes, the Paris-based Kurdistan Human Rights Network announced January 9. It said 228 kolbars were injured, 205 being shot by border guards.
